Trump based remarks about imminent arrest on 'mere rumours', says his lawyer

Former US President Donald Trump's attorney, on Monday, said that the Republican leader's remarks about getting arrested on Tuesday of last week were based on mere ‘rumours.' Trump’s prediction last week about his imminent arrest "was a bust," as claimed by the lawyer but the hearing for his indictment by the Manhattan grand jury is expected to reconvene as early as Monday. Trump caused political startle as he claimed on his Twitter-like platform Truth Social that he was expected to be arrested by law enforcement for the "hush money" scheme investigation that was paid to the adult American star Stormy Daniels when he was a presidential candidate in 2016. 

'He was reacting to a lot of leaks': Trump's attorney

Trump’s lawyer, Joseph Tacopina, acknowledged that while Trump stirred a firestorm "based on nothing more than conjecture" his claims were stemming merely from the rumours. Speaking on Sunday on NBC’s Meet the Press, Trump's lawyer denied that he was facing the "imminent arrest" risk on Tuesday, adding that such a remark was flimsy. 

“He [Trump] didn’t make it up, he was reacting to a lot of leaks coming out of the district attorney’s office,” Tacopina said in a televised interview. “And then there was of course a lot of rumours regarding the arraignment being the next day. So I think he just assumed, based on those leaks, that was what was going to happen," he added. 

In a post, Trump referred to himself as the ex "President of the United States" who is also a “leading Republican candidate" but that he will be "arrested on Tuesday of next week." The latter did not explain why he expected to be arrested. His team later told broadcasters that Trump’s post was not related to any official communication and that he hadn't received any notifications from prosecutors. But security was beefed at the Manhattan courthouse and district attorney's vicinity as Alvin Bragg prepared to hear the case, which was postponed last week. There have been fears about violent protests breaking out, especially from MAGA supporters of Trump who stormed the US Capitol on 6 January 2021. At a campaign rally that he launched in Texas, Trump told his supporters that the investigations against him were the “witch-hunt” by the US President Joe Biden's Democratic party.